Recommendation for "cost of living calculators"

[markusk]

I am in the process of interviewing for jobs.

I currently live in a suburb of Philadelphia and contemplating moving to Northern Virginia or Northern California. Can anyone point me to a free online "cost of living" calculator to compare costs? I found a few online via a google search, but they are giving me conflicting information.

Thanks in advance.

[tinapbeana]

i don't know of any, unfortunately, but i'll see what i can find however, my gut says northern VA will be lower cost.

[tinapbeana]

ok, the one i found that seems the most accurate is from BankRate.com because it says the data is updated every quarter. most of the others i found were updated a year or year and a half ago...

the other neat thing about the one at BankRate is that it compares (and shows!) example cost of goods and the difference between 2 cities i.e. the typical cost of a pair of womens pants for both cities and the difference between those costs... pretty thorough.

[markusk]

Thanks. This one is much more detailed!

markusk

[jIM_Ohio]

I have lived in Northern VA, and I can guarantee (I think??!!) it is more expensive than philly- it is the most expensive place I've ever lived.

[tinapbeana]

i thought the OP was trying to compare the cost of living in northern VA versus northern CA: he lived in philly now but was going to relocate to one of the two areas mentioned above?

[markusk]

You are correct, tinapbeana. I am looking for jobs in Northern VA, Northern CA and the greater Philadelphia area. The job prospects in Philly are not so good.... so it's either Northern CA verses Northern VA.

I also went to the local book store the other day to check out "Best Places to Raise a Family" and “Cities Ranked & Rated: More Than 400 Metropolitan Areas Evaluated in the U.S. & Canada” to see what they had to say about the various areas.

Both Northern CA and VA have high cost of living, but I must admit, even with the housing costs, I've always wanted to live in sunny California.

markusk

[RJB1180]

Having lived and worked in both NVA and The Jersey Shore. The cost difference is nothing. Some things are higher, some lower. If you do decide on the NVA region, figure out what side of the city your job is on and then live on that side, ie va vs MD. the diffference in commute is amazing. Also figure out if tele commuting is an option because that can greatly affect your choice of home location. If you have to commute everyday living further than 30 miles (louden cty, fredricksburg, Mt. Airy MD) really eats up your day.

Hope this helps